DUSHANBE, 05.09.2023 (NIAT Khovar) – On September 1, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted by consensus a resolution entitled «The Follow-up to the United Nations Conference on the Midterm Comprehensive Review of the Implementation of the Objectives of the International Decade for Action, “Water for Sustainable Development”, 2018–2028, which was co-facilitated by Tajikistan, the Netherlands and Senegal.

To this end, the international community welcomed and supported another initiative of the President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon to host the United Nations Conference on the Final Comprehensive Review of the Implementation of the Objectives of the International Decade for Action, “Water for Sustainable Development”, 2018–2028, in 2028 in Tajikistan.

It should also be recalled that initially, this initiative was proposed by the President of Tajikistan during the UN Water Conference (held on March 22-24, 2023, in New York). This resolution was drafted based on the initiatives and proposals of the UN member states announced at the UN 2023 Water Conference. Notably, this document points out that the world is not on track to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, which has a negative impact on human well-being and sustainable development.

The resolution also emphasizes the importance of strengthening international cooperation at all levels to implement the goals and objectives related to water and sanitation of the 2030 Agenda, especially for developing countries.

In the operative paragraph, this resolution decides, in addition to the convening of the UN 2028 Water Conference in Tajikistan, to convene the UN Water Conference to Accelerate the Implementation of Sustainable Development Goal in 2026.

In addition, the UNGA requests the Secretary-General to present a United Nations system-wide water and sanitation strategy in consultation with Member States before the end of the seventy-eighth session of the General Assembly.

The adoption of this resolution once again proves that the international community recognizes the critical role of Tajikistan as a leading country in water issues worldwide and has full confidence in our initiatives and actions in this area.

Indeed, the convening of the UN Water Conference in 2028, which will be held for the first time inTajikistan, will be a historic and unique event contributing to the prestige and influence of the country in the international arena.